It seems like every time I'm in the grocery store, I stop and grab a bag of tortilla chips. I eat a chip or two and then the bag gets put in the pantry and I totally forget about it. By the time I find them again, they are stale and I toss them out. But stale tortilla chips aren't completely useless. I've learned that next time I discover that stale bag of tortilla chips, they can be saved! Try out these recipes that will appreciate your stale chips.
1. Make Tortilla Chip Mexican Pizza
If you're not in the mood for a basic pizza, spice things up by making tortilla chip Mexican pizza. This Mexican pizza only needs six ingredients, and takes about 25 minutes to make. Not only can you use your leftover tortilla chips, but you can also use leftover taco meat for this recipe. This is perfect for lunch or a late night snack.
2. Use Like Bread Crumbs
You can use tortilla chips as bread crumbs in about any recipe. The tortilla chips can be put in a food processor or blender until they are finely chopped. Use these breadcrumbs the next time you're making chicken fingers, meatloaf, or even as a topping for mac and cheese.
3. Make Breakfast Nachos
What could possibly be better than pulled pork and nachos for a breakfast meal? I don't think anybody else will be able to say that started their morning by dipping a tortilla chip into an egg and pulled pork all at the same time. You will need a handful of ingredients for these epic pulled pork breakfast nachos. They take some time to make, but it's so worth it. This is how eating nachos should be.
4. Use as a Garnish for Soup
If your tortilla soup or chili looks like it needs a little more decoration, use tortilla chips as a garnish. You can season the tortilla chips by using chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and anything else you would like.
5. Scramble With Your Eggs
Next time you're looking for a meal to make for brunch, consider this one. All you need is eight simple ingredients and you can make eggs with tortilla chips, salsa, and cheese. This recipe only takes 10 minutes and can serve up to six people.
6. Use in a Casserole
Tortilla chips will be used twice in this recipe so you will definitely finish off your bag. Although this particular Tex-Mex cowboy casserole takes some time, it's great to make when you're planning on having a group of friends over. The fact that there is cottage cheese in the recipe might scare you a little, but it will still be a feast for the eyes as well as the taste buds.
7. Throw Into a Salad
The options are endless when you are putting tortilla chips into a salad. If you don't just want to use your chips for a chopped taco salad, you can use them to make a Tex-Mex chopped chicken salad or even a Doritos taco salad. The tortilla chips will give your salad extra flavor and crunch.
Next time you spot an bag of stale tortilla chips in the back of the pantry, you'll no longer be tempted to toss them into the trash. You can use them in exciting new ways to add crunch and flair to any meal or snack.